“The question is, do people think we’re tending to the things they care about?” said Sen. John D. Rockefeller IV (D-W.Va.) as he left a meeting of Senate leaders…

“I concluded from last night, we’ve got to pass health care,” Connolly said, adding that his message is: “Make sure I give Democrats something to be excited about.”…

But many of the party’s leading progressives echoed the idea that the elections showed the only way to build toward victory is to aggressively push the agenda items envisioned in January. “We have to do it all,” said Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

“It’s a matter of tangibles being delivered,” said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), a close ally of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). “Victory breeds victory.”